As P-chan loudly indicates, the other Akindo members are crestfallen at Mikako's plight and would have all gone to visit Ruriko if not for the fact that there is an important flea market to prepare products for. Mariko inadvertently ignites a divergent concourse with Yuusuke and storms away in frustration before Risa decides to go visit Ruriko by herself. As the other Akindo members get right to work, Mikako is finding that there is more wrong with Ruriko than the stomach ulcer when she has it explained that Ruriko has been harboring several anxieties and has proof of Mikako's subterfuge with Hirohiko. The air cleared between mother and daughter, Risa visiting with flowers helps with the tense ambiance of the already-stormy office politics between Ruriko and her editor; ironically, this becomes the forum for Ayumi to catalyze Yuusuke and Mariko's reconciliation. The deus ex machina that ultimately resolves things arrives in the form of Hirohiko paying a visit the next day; relieved of her parents' marital drama, Mikako jubilantly sets course for the Akindo studio with Tsutomu right on her heels.